In-Depth Coverage

Original Commentaries

09/04/08: From Zero-Sum to Win-Win —Mara Rudman, adviser, Middle East Progress; senior fellow, Center for American Progress. Original Commentary for Middle East Bulletin.
09/04/08: How Progress Is Possible —
08/07/08: How to Deal with Jerusalem —Lt. Col. (Res.) Ron Shatzberg, Project Director, Economic Cooperation Foundation. Interview with Middle East Bulletin.

Setting the Record Straight

Two-State Solution Still Best Option

“In practical terms, we can reach two conclusions: First, a final-status agreement, although its details are known, cannot be secured in the foreseeable future. Second, the time has come to think about other solutions. One of them is a return not to the 1967 borders, but rather, to the reality that prevailed in 1967, when Jordan controlled the West Bank.”
—Major General (ret.) Giora Eiland, “The Jordanian Option,” YNet, September 3, 2008

"On both sides of the green line and, indeed, wherever people think about solutions to the Israeli- Palestinian conflict, a lot of old/new thinking is taking place. … Most of these ideas are patently unrealistic. Discussion of them often reflects despair, not pragmatic strategic thinking. … Precisely because there is no such alternative, other options more readily suggest themselves, ranging from temporary conflict management to three states or entities. Nor does failure today mean that tomorrow we cannot try again to arrive at a two-state solution, which remains the best option for all."
—Yossi Alpher, coeditor of the bitterlemons family of internet publications & former director, Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies, Tel Aviv University, "One State Definitely Not an Option," bitterlemons.org, August 18, 2008

Middle East Analysis

How Progress Is Possible —Hiba Husseini, chair, Legal Committee to Final Status Negotiations between the Palestinians and Israelis; former vice chairperson of the Palestine Securities Exchange (1998-May 2005). Interview with Middle East Bulletin.
Perils of an Israeli Transition —The New York Times, Editorial
The Arabs Will Look Differently Upon America —Ron Pundak, director general of the Peres Center for Peace and former architects and negotiators of the Oslo Agreement (bitterlemons.org)

How Many Were Arrested Last Night?

Danny Rubinstein (Haaretz)

September 26, 2007

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Syrian President Bashar Assad (AP)

Jericho is considered a quiet town. With the exception of the hotel, the closed casino at the southern entrance to the city and the destroyed police building, it looks fairly miserable, as it was when the Israel Defense Forces occupied it over 40 years ago. The Security Academy complex is northwest of the city. It is an impressive structure, with classrooms, computer systems, and a spacious, modern gym, all built with aid money, mainly American.

The first class, 120 officers from all of the PA security organizations, will begin its training in the coming days. The students will learn basic subjects, including administration and law. General Tawfiq Tirawi, the strongman of the West Bank security organizations, is emphatic: "They will also learn Hebrew - there will be no officer here who does not know Hebrew well."

There seems to be a serious effort to revamp the PA security forces in the West Bank, but it is not clear whether the attempt will work. In recent years security control over a number of cities in the West Bank was transferred to Palestinian organizations, which failed. Access the full article>>